Another Time, Another Place
by Kannetsui
Summary: After his brother's death the position of heir apparent to the Yotsuba clan became vacant, but being born unable to freely wield magic Shiba Tatsuya was passed over for his childhood best friend Hagakure Satsuki. However, her fiancé's death has made the new heiress unstable and so Tatsuya is made her guardian to keep Satsuki under control.
1. Chapter 1

_Please enjoy and leave a review, I do read them and take into consideration the feedback when writing :)_

**Another time, Another place**

Shiba Tatsuya is the younger of Shiba Miya's two children, with his impressive academic record and military achievements as well as being Yotsuba Maya's nephew, in any other family he would have been hailed as a genius. However as a Born-Specialized Magician, unable to freely wield magic until an experiment performed on him by his mother, he was considered a fake magician and an outcast. After his elder brother's death the position as the heir apparent and the next head of the Yotsuba clan became vacant, despite being Yotsuba Maya's closest living relative Tatsuya was passed over for his best friend and his late brother's fiancé Hagakure Satsuki.

Unlike her childhood friend despite being born into a cadet branch Satsuki possessed exceptional magical abilities, inheriting both the mind manipulation and the warped calculation area traits of the clan, and is expected to surpass even Shiba Maya. Since her fiancé's death however, Satsuki has become increasingly unstable and temperamental. In order to control the unpredictable heiress, Maya suggests Tatsuya for the position as her guardian despite the fact that she clearly has no need for a bodyguard.

Tatsuya quickly accepts however, when extending the offer, were Satsuki's own intention to protect herself? Or to protect him?

**Chapter 1**

"I can't accept this," said a male student.

"You're still going on about that...?" his female companion replied as she yawned.

It was early in the morning of the day of the school entrance ceremony, with less than half an hour to go before the start of the ceremony. A young woman sat on a bench near the auditorium where the entrance ceremony was to take place, she leaned against the back of the bench with what seemed like no intention of moving. They were both freshmen, however their uniforms were distinctively different, on the female student's chest was the eight-petaled flower design of the First High School's emblem. That said emblem was not present on the male student's blazer.

"I'm not doing it and that's all there is to say," she replied.

"Satsuki," her companion said in an exasperated tone. If they played a drinking game with the number of times he said her name in such a tone, no one would survive.

"My face is puffy from eating ramen last night," the girl complained. "I haven't brushed my hair and I didn't have time to do my makeup this morning and you want me to stand in front of the entire freshman class? No, I don't want to. You do it, you're far more qualified. I really don't get why are you're a reserve Tatsuya. You topped the entrance exams after all. Typically speaking, the one who should become the freshman class representative should be you, not me. I didn't even study, my tests scores only put me in 4th place."

"Putting aside the question of where you got hold of the entrance exam results and the fact that you didn't study despite the numerous times when I asked you if you had and you replied with 'yes'. Since this is a Magic High School, it's obvious that they would place more emphasis on practical magic skills rather than a paper test, right? Satsuki, you are well aware of the extent of my practical abilities, aren't you? I'm quite surprised that I even got accepted here as a Course 2 student."

While from the outside it seemed like just another everyday calm conversation, in reality it was a scene where the male student was trying to pacify the female student who had been lashing out angrily with her sharp tongue, however unless you knew her well you couldn't even tell she was angry. Satsuki had passive aggressive down to a science, while her tone remained neutral and calm in reality Tatsuya knew she was furious.

Satsuki was stunningly beautiful, anyone who so much as set their eyes on her would without a doubt be captivated. With long black hair, full lips and deep blue eyes set in a heart shaped. She was someone who had been told such her whole life and it showed in her posture and the way she held herself, she was confident and effortlessly elegant, the ideal noble maiden, although in reality she was hardly either of those things. On the other hand, for the male, other than his erect back and piercing eyes, nothing in his ordinary appearance could be said to be in anyway attention-grabbing. Yet there was an aura about him, a warrior's presence, like a shinobi or a samurai, as if he was intentionally making himself appear mundane, only his female companion knew the truth, a truth that would never see the light of day because of her.

"How can you be so unsure of yourself?" Satsuki demanded sitting up straight. She was livid, however only her trembling hands gave her away, she gripped the bench to stop the shaking and as she did a cold frost emerged from her finger tips, covering the painted wood. "Even when there's no one who's a match for you in studies and taijutsu. The truth is, even for magic-"

"Satsuki," Tatsuya called out her name in an exceptionally strong tone, Satsuki clenched her jaw, still frosting. He sat down behind her and reached for her hands, gently prying the bench out of her grip and held them in his. He looked at the spot where her hands had touched, her magic so cold that it scorched the wood.

"You understand right? Even if you say that, it can't be helped." Satsuki nodded passively however he could tell from the look of anger in her eyes that it wasn't over. He put his hand on her lowered head and slowly stroked her glossy black hair, twirling a lock around his fingers while thinking, it was an old habit. Now, what can I do to fix her mood? the young man pondered. "...I'm really happy you feel that way. I always feel that I'm being saved whenever you get angry in my place."

"Liar." Satsuki replied, not looking at him, she yanked her hair out of his grip. She hated when he played with her hair as it was something he only did when stressed or anxious, she didn't like it when he felt either.

"I'm not lying," Tatsuya insisted with a smile.

"Liar." she repeated. "It feels like you're always lecturing me about my temper..."

"I'm not lying. Even if you back out of giving the reply address, there is no way I'll be selected as a replacement. If you back out at this eleventh hour, you won't be able to avoid a blemish on your appraisal. You do understand that, right? Satsuki, you are a smart girl." She scoffed at that, a smart girl he called her, that coming from him...

"I don't care," she answered with an all too innocent smile that Tatsuya instantly knew was a dangerous sign. She was that type of person after all, if you gave her three choices she'd go for the fourth. He was always terrible at convincing her to do anything, unlike his brother... If only Tetsunosuke was here, like his name sake he had a will of iron that even Satsuki's hot temper could only give way. No, there was no use bring up the dead now, it'd been almost 3 years and while his death didn't really affect Tatsuya himself, loosing her fiancé had changed Satsuki, perhaps bring up the dead was exactly the push she needed.

"Satsuki, I'm looking forward to it, and I'm sure my brother would have as well. He would have been in his first year at university now wouldn't he?" he said with a small smile, Satsuki tensed at the mention of the late Shiba Tetsunosuke. "He came in second in his class so he never had the chance."

"He came in second because like you he wasn't suppose to bring unnecessary attention upon himself," Satsuki replied quietly, her mood only darkening. His words only had the opposite effect. "I get what your trying to do Tatsuya, so stop it, you're brilliant at everything except when it comes to emotions."

Tatsuya was at a loss for what to do, he really wasn't well equipped in dealing with such situations, all the scenarios he ran in his head ended with her either angry or crying it seemed. If it was anyone else, he'd have no problem manipulating them into doing his bidding, but not her, she saw through everything he did. They were childhood friends after all, in the loosest interpretation of the words, in later years it became more of a master and servant relationship, and to his ignorance, one which made her extremely uncomfortable.

Tatsuya was a normal child like anyone else until what his mother did to him, the cheerful little boy that he used to be was burned deep into Satsuki's memories. The little boy who was afraid of bugs and so terrified of the dark he used to sneak into her room because he couldn't fall asleep alone. The little boy who was neglected by every one of his family members except of his older brother and the little girl brought into the main house from a cadet branch. THAT boy was her childhood friend, not the machine in front of her.

They used her in the procedure, making her part of what maimed him, it made her feel disgusting, being the reason he was the way he was. They'd forcibly altering the area in the consciousness that created strong emotions and replaced it with a Magic Calculation Model, creating an artificial Magician. With the woman responsible dead, only Yotsuba Maya and Hagakure Satsuki knew that the model implanted inside of Tatsuya was replicated from Satsuki's own consciousness, his mother had essentially cut and pasted a portion of her into him along with her magical abilities. As a result, despite no longer feeling any strong emotions like fury, despair, envy, hatred, disgust, gluttony, lust and sloth, he still retained his brotherly love for his best friend.

Satsuki hated them, they used her to bind him to the Yotsuba clan, would he hate her if he ever learnt of her part in what had happened to him? No, she doubted he would even care. She resented herself for the way she felt about Tatsuya, it wasn't his fault but it wasn't hers either, yet it didn't stop her from lashing out against him and every single time he'd forgive her, because to him she was the only person he loved, the only person who mattered. It should have made her feel escalated, being so loved by the one she craved it from the most, however it only made things worse, he didn't love her in the way she loved him. As a result of what his mother did, he never would and she hated herself for it, because at the end of the day, it didn't have to be this way. While she had the power to free him she would never use, she hated herself for preferring Tatsuya to be by her side her as a solider than see him live happily ever after with someone else.

"Satsuki?" Tatsuya asked as he reached out and touched her cheek gently. Sataki leaned in against his hand before resting her forehead against his collarbone, taking in him warmth and scent. Without even thinking he placed an arm around her and gently stoked her shoulder, comforting her without knowing why she needed comforting.

Why is he is good to me? Satsuki thought to herself, she told herself that she loved him more than anyone else in the world to justify her actions. The mentioning of her late fiancé Tetsunosuke made her think of one of the stories he'd tell her at night, of the princess and the knight who fell in love. When the king discovered them together he threw the knight into a pit with two doors and gave the princess the choice to which would open. One led to a den of hungry lions who would eat and devour the knight, the other to a maiden with whom he could spend the rest of his life with happily ever after. When asked which door the princess should choose, Satsuki chose the lion's door, she didn't understand how anyone would willingly let the one they loved live happily with someone else. He only laughed, when she asked him the same question he had a different answer. Tetsunosuke said that she was young but would one day understand. She missed him...her best friend. Satsuki finally sighed, this had gone on long enough.

"I'll do it, okay?" She said giving in, Satsuki pulled away from Tatsuya and stood up.

"Of course, break a leg. I'll be looking forward to your performance." He replied, puzzled by her sudden change in attitude and continuing darkening mood.

"Well then, I'll be taking my leave." Satsuki did a half hearted curtsy, she ran her fingers through her hair, and disappeared into the auditorium first to prepare for her speech. After ascertaining that she had ready gone inside, the young man breathed a sigh of relief, he wouldn't have been surprised had she changed her mind at the last second again.

"Are you a new student? It's almost time for the ceremony," said a female voice.

The first thing that came into view was the skirt of a uniform. Following that, wrapping around her left arm was a wide bracelet. Broader and thinner than its previous model, it was the latest CAD that was made with fashion in mind. According to Tatsuya's memory, the only students who were allowed to constantly carry a CAD within the school compounds were either executive members of the student council or particular committee members.

"Thank you, I'll be on my way," he answered. On the left breast of the female's blazer was of course the eight-petaled flower emblem. He did not hide his own flowerless emblem, he had his pride and would not perform such a cowardly act, above all Satsuki would be furious if he did. Somehow, it seemed like this upperclassman had an uncommonly sociable personality. Judging from her tone and speech, she seemed to be getting friendlier and had no intention of letting him leave just yet.

"Ahh, I beg your pardon. I'm the student council president of the First High School, Saegusa Mayumi. Written as 'seven grass,' read as Saegusa. Nice to meet you." Even though she added a wink at the end, there was not a hint of wonder in her tone. She was no doubt a pretty girl with a well-proportioned body despite her small frame, and radiated such an alluring atmosphere that it would not be surprising if newly matriculated male students misunderstood her intentions. Tatsuya however, had grown up with someone whom he genuinely believed to be the most beautiful person in the world, was immune to such things and paid her appearance no mind. Instead, upon hearing her self-introduction he involuntarily frowned. She was from a numbered family... and to top it off, a 'Saegusa'.

A Magician's ability was greatly influenced by heredity and a Magician's qualities was greatly related to his or her lineage. In Japan the houses that possessed a superior blood lineage in magic by tradition carried a number in their family name and among them the Saegusa was one of the two houses deemed to be the most powerful in this country currently. The young woman who was the student council president of this school was no doubt of their direct descent. In other words, she was an elite among elites, her lineage surpassed even Satsuki's. The exact opposite of him. Tatsuya held back a bitter mutter, he could practically hear Satsuki's voice in his ear 'I don't care if she's the queen of fucking Narnia, man up and step up!' (she had a love for 20th century english literature) which helped Tatsuya to bring out a courteous smile and reply with his name.

"I'm, no, my name is Shiba."

"Shiba Tatsuya-kun... I see. You are that Shiba-kun huh..." The student council president's eye went wide with surprise before she nodded meaningfully. Tatsuya did his best not to think about the 'that' she just used before his name and politely kept quiet. "Among the teachers, you have been quite a hot topic," the student council president said with a cheerful smile, appearing unconcerned with Tatsuya's silence.

It was probably due to how rare it was for one to top the written test yet completely flunk the practical portion, thought Tatsuya. However, no such incredulity nor negative emotion could be sensed from her. He could feel no sign of ridicule embedded in that smile, only a friendly positivity emanating from Saegusa Mayumi which confused him.

"Out of a hundred marks, the average mark of all seven subjects in your entrance exam was ninety-six. Especially outstanding were Magic Theory and Magic Engineering. Even though the average mark of those who passed was no more than seventy, you received a perfect grade without a hitch for both subjects that had essay-based questions. It's an unheard of record high."

"Those are merely paper test results. They are just data inside an information system," Tatsuya's modestly replied and pointed to his own left chest. In the appraisal of magic high school students, more emphasis was given to the practical results.

However, Saegusa Mayumi shook her head with a smile at Tatsuya's words. "That kind of terrific score, at the very least, I wouldn't be able to reproduce, you know? I may not look like it, but I'm really much stronger in theory-based subjects. If my entrance exam had the same questions, I definitely wouldn't be able to score such a high mark like you, Shiba-kun." They were words he'd heard Satsuki tell him many times over however having them come from someone with whom he shared no emotion bond with had a different meaning, it almost made him uncomfortable.

"It's about time... please excuse me." Tatsuya took his leave from the student council president who seemed to have something more to say, and turned his back towards her without waiting for her reply. Somewhere in his heart, he feared the smiling face of Saegusa Mayumi, and what might happen if he were to continue talking to her. Even though he was not conscious of what exactly he was afraid of. If Satsuki was here she would know, no, if she were here she wouldn't have allowed the conversation to take such a turn.

As a result of the conversation with the student council president, by the time Tatsuya entered the auditorium, more than half the seats were already filled up.

As there was no seat designation he was free to sit anywhere however, there was clearly an order to the distribution of seats for the freshmen. The first half at the front were taken up by the Blooms. The students who wore the eight-petaled flower emblem on their left breast. The freshmen who would be able to receive the full benefits of the curriculum of this school. The second half at the back were taken up by the Weeds. The students whose left breast were left blank. The freshmen who were only allowed to enrol in this school as reserves. Even though they were all freshmen who were becoming students at the school on the very same day, they were already cleanly divided. It was certainly a kind of common sense in itself. With no intention of standing out and openly going against the flow, Tatsuya chose at his own discretion an empty seat near the back row of seats and sat down.

Tatsuya thought about his temperamental best friend who should be, but most likely wasn't, doing her final rehearsal at this time, he shook his head in resignation. That girl was incapable of becoming flustered even right before the main event no matter how ill prepared she was, even if she was making it up as she went along she would be fine, he couldn't ever picture her stumbling. In the end with nothing to do, he adjusted and sat himself upright on the hard seat and closed his eyes. Just as he was about to slip into a nap, a voice asked.

"Er, is the seat beside you occupied?" He opened his eyes, and just as he had thought the voice had been directed at him. As expected from the voice, it was a female student.

"Help yourself," he replied even though he was bewildered as to why she purposely chose to sit beside a random male student, despite the fact that there were still many empty seats available. The young woman had a slender build, and thus Tatsuya did not feel any unease with her sitting beside him. Rather, it was much more comfortable than if a sweaty muscle block were to sit beside him. Thinking about that, Tatsuya gave a polite nod.

"Thank you," the young woman nodded as she took her seat. Beside her, another young women sat down. "Er..." The voice called out to Tatsuya again, who had turned back to facing the front after having no further interest in the same year student beside him with whom he had just met by chance.

What on earth does she want? He wondered. Clearly, she wasn't an acquaintance, nor did he bump her elbow or foot. If Tatsuya were to say it himself, he was sitting with good posture. He shouldn't have done anything that would warrant a complaint but—

"I'm Shibata Mizuki. Nice to meet you." Unexpectedly, she introduced herself, in a timid tone, to Tatsuya who cocked his head. Even though he made it a rule not to judge someone by their appearance, she didn't seem to be the type who was good at impressing others.

She probably forced herself to do it, Tatsuya judged. With the thought that they would need to help one another since they were both disadvantaged Course 2 students.

"I'm Shiba Tatsuya. Nice to meet you too." Upon his reply the eyes beyond those large lenses appeared relieved.

In this era, it was quite rare for girls to wear glasses. Since the middle of the twenty-first century, as a consequence of vision correction procedures becoming widespread, the ailment known as myopia had become a thing of the past in this country. If she was wearing glasses despite this, it could be because it was her hobby, a fashion accessory, or due to a particular need. From his impression of this young woman, rather than wearing them for fashion, it was more probable that she was wearing those glasses because of the latter. People who suffered from the hereditary disorder, showed symptoms of being oversensitive to spirit particle emission, to magicians it was not that rare of a condition. However, it was rare to see a person who had it such that they needed to constantly block the spirit particle emission with glasses. It would not be of much concern if it was because of a lesser manipulative ability, but if it was due to an extremely superior sensitivity, then it would be bad news for Tatsuya.

Tatsuya had a secret. It was a secret that could not be uncovered from his outward appearance alone, and as such, not of concern, but, if she did have those special eyes then his secret might be discovered by random chance. He would need to be much more alert and act cautiously whenever she was around.

"I'm Chiba Erika. Nice to meet you, Shiba-kun." The voice of the young woman sitting beside Mizuki cut off Tatsuya's trail of thought.

"Nice to meet you too."

"But, can I say that this is an interesting coincidence?" Different from her friend, Erika appeared to be an extrovert and of an unreserved type which was only amplified by her short, bright hair and her distinct facial features.

"What is?"

"Well, you know, we are Shiba, Shibata, and Chiba, right? Don't they rhyme somehow? Though they are a little different."

"…I see." Tatsuya could understand what she meant by that but it was something that people general didn't bother to point out. Her last name though, Chiba, was she another numbered one? He thought to himself. I didn't know that the Chiba House had a daughter by the name of 'Erika'. Interesting… however he felt no need to pursue to subject, after all, what did it matter to him?

Xxx

Satsuki stretched her neck gently as she prepared to walk on stage to give her speech, it wasn't because she was nervous but because she had slept in a funny position last night due to Tatsuya's habit of clinging to her as if she were a teddy bear and the muscles in her neck and back had tensed as a result. The heartless solider was still afraid of the dark, no, he was afraid of being alone in the dark, either way the thought brought a smile to her lips. He needed her, even if it was just to help him sleep at night, he still needed her.

She did her best to disguise the boredom and pure lack of interest in the people who came up to her and introduced themselves, she had an image to maintain after all, while not publicly known, she was the heiress to the Yotsuba clan and as a member of the 10 families there was a standard that was expected of her. Not from her peers or teachers but from the family elders who would no doubt watch a recording of this and from the head of the clan herself. No matter, it was just a speech, easy enough, even though she hadn't prepared anything and had every intention of making things up as she went but Tatsuya had gone to the trouble to write down a list of phrases for her so she intended to use those. He was watching, she realised. He was out there watching her, she needed to make him proud.

"You don't seem very nervous," someone commented. Stasuki turned around to see a rather handsome male student smiling at her, on his left breast was the same flower emblem as her own. Aside from a select few students, no one was allowed backstage however the red band around his upper arm signified that he was a member of the discipline committee, part of the security detail. 'What did he want?' was the first question Satsuki asked herself.

"Not at all," She replied, it would be immodest for her to say anything else after all. "I'm absolutely terrified." As he didn't introduce himself she felt no need to do so either, no doubt he already knew who she was, after all there was only one freshman representative, and she didn't care enough to ask him for his name.

"Well you hide it well," he assured her. "Good luck," he added before returning to his patrol.

Satsuki frowned as she watched him walk off, was that all he wanted? To wish her luck? She shook her head, no matter…

Xxx

Satsuki's orientation address was outstanding as expected, even if Tatsuya did say so himself as it was him who had written down a list of key words and phrases for her to use last minute when he learnt that she was not going to show up. However, despite being underprepared Tatsuya never had the slightest thought that she would fumble at something like this, at least not accidentally. Even though he had included a number of dangerous phrases like "everyone alike", "as a single body", "aside from magic" or "in an integrated manner", it came down to the way she managed to set them up properly that they didn't sound cheesy in any way.

Satsuki's seemingly open, gentle and modest demeanour coupled with her stunningly beautiful appearance, had captured the hearts of not just the males, the freshmen, but the upperclassmen as well and she would no doubt be surrounded from tomorrow onward. That was not an unusual thing. However Satsuki had no patience for crowds, she dislike humans in general and while she would no doubt do her best to maintain the ladylike image she'd been reared to project, Satsuki would slowly isolate herself from the rest of her class.

Why did she always do it? Tatsuya pondered. It almost felt like she was punishing herself. He wanted to commend her immediately, but he knew that she would be swarmed by people doing exactly that and him contributing to the chaos was the last thing she'd want, he would wait for her to fight the crowd and then listen to her complain about the stupidity of the human race later.

"Shiba-kun, which class are you in?" Erika asked with a face that could not hide her excitement.

"Class E."

"Yay! We are in the same class." Erika hopped up and down happily. In Tatsuya's eyes however it felt like she was overdoing it.

"I am in the same class as well." Mizuki added with a similar expression.

"What shall we do? Shall we go take a look at our homeroom as well?" Erika asked.

Tatsuya shook his head at Erika's invitation. "Sorry. I'm meeting up with my friend." There were no lessons and he had agreed to go home together immediately after the procedures were done with Satsuki who had no intention of staying any longer than she had to.

"Eeehh… if Shiba-kun is turning down the invitation of two very cute girls she must be something special?" On hearing Erika's thoughtful and questioning murmur Tatsuya was troubled as to how he should answer her. For one thing, how did she know his friend was a girl? He felt that he couldn't quite connect the cause and effect. Fortunately, he didn't need to force himself to answer.

"Could your friend be… the representative of the freshmen, Hagakure Satsuki-san?" A nod from Tatsuya was enough to confirm the answer to that question.

"Eh? Really?" Erika remarked. "Hmm… I guess that really makes things complicated huh? With a girlfriend who is such a high achiever in the same school year." Tatsuya originally decided to let the remark slide but in the end corrected that she was not his girlfriend.

"That aside, how did you know?" On hearing Tatsuya's question the two young ladies smiled faintly but didn't reply.

"The way you were starring at her?" Erika finally piped up with a smirk.

"That's not it. Hmm, how should I put it…" Mizuki couldn't quite put it into words. "It's your aura I guess. Your two seem… balanced together I guess is the best way to put it."

"That's right! Aura, it's your aura." Slapping her own thigh, Erika gave a strong nod as well. "You two seem well acquainted."

This time, it was Tatsuya's turn to smile. "Chiba-san… you seem to be someone who gets carried away easily, correct?"

"Carried away? You're so cruel," Erika started protesting but judging from her tone, she wasn't really upset.

"Tatsuya!" The trio were talking in the corner near the exit of the auditorium, Satsuki's voice called out as she slipped out from the crowd surrounding her. He was surprised she'd put up with them for as long as she did. Even though Satsuki had been raised to never shy away from socialising, she was an introverted type of person. Not only that, she hated flattery and compliments, she already knew she was pretty and that her speech was excellent, she didn't need you to tell her again and again. Tatsuya had intend to say "You were quick" before he could he noticed the person standing behind her.

"Hello Shiba-kun. We meet again." In response to that disarming smiling face Tatsuya merely nodded his head silently in response. Satsuki either hadn't seemed to register that the student council president stood behind her or she had decided to be more bothered by the two young ladies who were snuggled up intimately beside Tatsuya.

"Tatsuya, they are…" He could tell right away that she was cranky, be it from hunger or fatigue he didn't know, however he sensed danger and immediately responded with.

"This is Shibata Mizuki-san. And that is Chiba Erika-san. We're in the same class."

"Hmmm, I see, isn't it a little too soon to be dating your classmates?" Satsuki smiled as she asked the question however it didn't reach her eyes. Oh dear, thought Tatsuya. He was aware of how possessive of him she was, however she seemed less tolerant than usual as her daily amount of patience had already been used up.

"There's no way that could happen, right, Satsuki? We were just chatting while waiting for you," he insisted.

The coldness in her eyes didn't fade, instead the smile on her lips widened as she walked towards his new classmates. Her fingers catching his as she passed and she held his hand in a blatant display of possession. "Hello, Shibata-san, Chiba-san. I am Hagakure Satsuki, it's a pleasure to meet you, I'm also a freshman just like Tatsuya, so I look forward to being in your care."

"I am Shibata Mizuki. Same here, I also look forward to being in your care."

"Nice to meet you. You can just call me Erika. Can I call you Satsuki?"

"Yes, please do," Satsuki replied, her smile oozing with charm.

"Ah-ha, Satsuki, I didn't expect you to be so sociable from your outward appearance."

"You are just as candid as you appeared to be. Nice to meet you, Erika," Tatsuya could have sworn her heard a back handed slap in that comment somewhere but he couldn't pinpoint it, perhaps there was none. Satsuki had a rather straight forward personality once you got to know her and it was understandable that she would be quite fond of Erika's frank attitude.

Tatsuya could not help but feel slightly jelous of that, however his attention was drawn to the student council president who waited patiently while Satsuki, in his eyes, blatantly ignored her. "Satsuki, are you done with your business with the student council?" He continued to speak to prevent her from straight out saying 'no'. " If you are not, I can go kill some time myself, you know?"

"It's fine," it was Saegusa Mayumi who had replied. "I'm here just to say hello for today. Satsuki-san… may I call you that as well?"

"Ah, yes." Perhaps it was because he'd known her for so long, but Tatsuya was surprised that no one else noticed the reluctance in her voice as Mayumi addressed her, her unreserved smile replaced by a solemn expression, her poker face concealing her true feelings. She didn't like her, Tatsuya instantly realised. Why was that? Underneath the polite demeanour that she had carefully cultivated over the years Satsuki was clearly upset and tired, she wanted people to leave her alone, she wanted to go home, was it only because of that? If not, what else could it be? He'd learnt to trust her instincts however skewed they were but still couldn't understand why she was suddenly on alert, their cover stories and identities gave nothing away, he made sure of it, even if Mayumi was from one of the Ten families they had nothing to worry about.

"Well then Satsuki-san, we'll catch up on another day." Mayumi bade goodbye with a smiling face and started to make her exit out of the auditorium. However, one of the accompanying male students called Mayumi to a stop. On his chest, blooming proudly as if it were a natural thing, was an eight-petaled flower emblem.

"But President, what about the schedule on our side..."

"We didn't really make an appointment beforehand. If she already has another engagement, she should give that priority, right?" The male student appeared to want to press further but was restrained by her eyes, Mayumi gave a meaningful smile to Satsuki and Tatsuya. "Well then Satsuki-san, I shall take my leave. Shiba-kun as well, I'd love to catch up with you one of these days." After bidding them off again, Mayumi left. However, the male student who was following behind her turned around and glared at Tatsuya so hard it was as if one could hear his tongue clicking.

"…Now, shall we go back?" Tatsuya asked, he'd grown used to such hostilities and was more worried about how to explain to Satsuki how he knew the student council president. Satsuki's attention however was the former.

"The little-" she cut herself off before she finished the sentence, they were in company after all and she had an image to maintain but he could tell she was upset. Tatsuya brought his hand up and pushed a section of her hair behind her ear, he twirled the end of the lock around his finger before letting go.

"Calm down," he said quietly in her ear. Satsuki pouted and rested her forehead against his chest, out of pure habit he wrapped an arm around her shoulders to comfort her. Erika and Mizuki exchanged looks at the open display of affection but said nothing.

Xxx

When they returned home there was no one to welcome them, the vastly large manor in which they resided in housed only Satsuki and Tatsuya. Tatsuya made his way to his room and took off his uniform. He didn't want to believe that such a 'makeshift mantle' could affect him, but after taking off the blazer his shoulders immediately felt a little lighter. As he was relaxing in the living room working on a project for Four Leaves Technology, before long Satsuki, who had finished changing as well, came down from her room.

With a sigh she immediately deposited herself on his lap and curled up against him, manoeuvring her body so that she didn't interfere with his work, Tatsuya gently patted her back to comfort her. Satsuki was the type who preferred to be alone, the only exception to this was Tatsuya, as he sat and worked she closed her eyes and buried herself in his embrace wanting nothing more than to just be by his side.

They didn't speak, not even when he felt her tears dampen his shirt, he didn't need to ask, he already knew why, instead he just held her in his arms, that was all he could do for her after all, be by her side. An uncontrollable rush of rage passed through him, it'd been a long time since he'd last felt this way, not since that incident at Okinawa. His brother had been killed but what infuriated him was that he wasn't there, he wasn't there to protect her. He swore never again, as her guardian not even the head of the clan herself could separate them. Whoever made Satsuki cry would pay.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Shiba Tatsuya awoke to the second day of his high school life, and it was quite ordinary. After all, even though he had started to attend high school, it didn't mean that the earth's rotation would stop. He made his way to the shared bathroom and lightly washed his face in the sink, he was heading out to the temple to train and after a hard session against his sensei he would no doubt come back covered in sweat and dirt, he would have take a shower to clean up anyway before heading off to school. Quietly making his way down the stairs and out the door, Tatsuya was careful not to wake Satsuki, she hated being woken up for no reason and he knew she would much rather continue sleeping in a warm bed than watch or join him in his morning training session at a place that could only be loosely described as a temple. She was a complete natural when it came to wielding magic and that natural proficiency seemed to also apply to other activities including physical athleticism and academics, with the strong exception of her horrid personality she could be an annoying perfect human being a lot of time... most of the time.

After warming up on his run there, his sensei did not hold back and a grueling training session later he made his way back home. He quickly took a shower and changed into his uniform before knocking on Satsuki's door to wake her up for school, at times like these he felt more like a mother than a guardian, perhaps the two weren't mutually exclusive. There was no response, he wasn't really all that surprised, she could sleep through a thunderstorm and wake up refreshed. Tatsuya opened her bedroom door and entered, he'd done so so many times now that it almost didn't process how inappropriate it was for a teenage male to enter a teenage female's room without an invitation.

Satsuki's room wasn't what anyone would picture when they first met her, or her lady like persona to be precise, instead of the grandeur that rivalled the royal palace she was rather minimalistic, stark white with dark walnut floorboards, aside from a large bed and a walk in robe there wasn't really anything in the bedroom. She did her homework in the living room, there were no toys, no clock, no laptop or a computer or even a mobile phone, the outside world had no influence here not even the passage of time was reflected anywhere but thorough the light that poured in from window. A large full length mirror however leaned against the wall, it was clearly designed to be hung up on the wall, something she never bothered to do. Her bedsheets were all white linen and Satsuki herself slept peacefully on the left side where the bed touched the far corner of the room against two walls. He'd noticed over the years that she was the furthest from claustrophobic as they came, actually liking cramped and tight spaces. He wondered why, what was the psychology behind it.

Tatsuya sat down on the right side of the bed and gently shook her awake. "Satsuki," he said in the usual warm tone that was reserved only for her. "Time to wake up." His stroked her cheek as he spoke. Satsuki groaned as she rolled over at his touch, opening one sleepy eye she looked up at him and smiled. Tatsyua smiled back.

"What time is it?" she asked.

"You have 40 minutes to get ready for school," he told her. Satsuki's smile turned into a pout as she rolled over facing away from him, not wanting to get out of bed. The first lesson was at 8am sharp and commuting to school would only take roughly 30 minutes, Satsuki always skipped breakfast and had an remarkable ability to get ready from start to finish in under 20 minutes. "Satsuki," Tatsuya gently poked at her shoulder. "Time to-" Satsuki's arms suddenly wrapped around him, pulling him down onto the bed beside her.

"Shhhh," she said quietly, her eyes still closed as she held him tightly against her chest like a teddy bear. Unlike most males his age, Tatsuya wasn't as affect by his proximity to her as they would have been but the effect wasn't entirely lost on him.

"Five more minutes then," he conceded, lying on the bed beside her and closing his eyes as well.

Xxx

Tatsuya watched Satsuki fiddle with the leather holder that she kept her smartphone shaped CAD in, the two sat in the small and linear two seated car linked to a central control system, called a cabinet, on their way to school. On her lap was a type of general mobile CAD with a thin strap that looped around her wrist, the most popular form was a bracelet, as the risk of dropping a mobile was considerable, however Satsuki had designed the strap and holder herself. Made from a lab developed nano-fibre designed for bullet proof clothing it mimicked the texture and feel of leather but was much stronger, the chance of it breaking was as close to zero as they came. The advantage of Satsuki's CAD was that it could be used with one hand, something she maximiser by keeping it in the sheath fastened to her forearm, a flick of the wrist was all she needed for it to slide down the inside of her sleeve and into the palm of her hand. Right now however, she'd rolled up her sleeve and was struggling to fasten the nano-fibre leather holder around her forearm, Tatsuya watched with an amused smile, it was a major design flaw, any practical design needed to be easily worn and removed. As he looked closer however, he realised that her difficulty with the fastener had nothing to do with the design but because she wasn't paying any attention to what she was doing, her mind was elsewhere. She clearly wanted to say something but was reluctant to do so. It was rare for her to not speak her mind, in fact it was sometimes downright impossible, especially when they were alone. For her to be so reluctant, it had to be something bad. Unable to take the unnatural silence, Tatsuya reached out and fixed the strap for her, what had her so worried? Satsuki kept her eyes on her left wrist as she spoke.

"Yesterday evening, I received a call from those people..."

"Those people? Ahh... by that, did my Father and the main branch do something to anger you again?"

"No, it's...well yes, those people, apparently they have been vigorously celebrating my school admission and..."

"Ahh, that's what you're talking about... it's the same as always isn't it?" At Tatsuya's words Satsuki clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palm and in the next moment the sound of her teeth grinding together in anger could be heard drifting out from under the long hair that hid her expression.

"I see... no matter how you look at it, I guess in the end it was a rather fleeting hope, hoping that they would change... they didn't even bother sending an email... those people, those..."

The temperature inside the car suddenly plummeted, activating the automatic heaters and a warm wind blew throughout the now silent cabin. Tatsuya intwined his fingers around hers loosening her clenched fists only to see how deep her nails had dug into her palm. They would bruise no doubt, covering them with his hand he held hers tightly in his.

"Calm down."

Satsuki struggled against an anger that could not be expressed with words, no matter how many times it happened Tatsuya remained amazed at how potent her interference magic was.

"...damn it." He watched as Satsuki took a deep breath in and out, after making sure that the uncontrolled flow of magic had stopped, Tatsuya loosened his grip but their fingers remained intertwined.

"I ignored my Father's wish of continuing to help with company work and entered high school. I didn't expect any congratulations at all. That much of his nature at least you should understand, right?" Tatsuya smiled at her, hoping to reassure her that he didn't care, because he really didn't. No ones opinion matter to him, not his father's, not his aunt's, only hers.

"For a parent to act so pathetically childish, it's infuriating." Satsuki snapped in response. "If he wanted to separate you from me he should have notified me and then Aunt first, but the fool didn't even have the courage for that... When will they stop thinking they can do however they please with you and treat you like a human being?" Tatsuya reached for her other hand and held them, he was touched at how much she cared, she was perhaps the only one who did. There was nothing to fear after all, he had no intention of leaving her side. Managing a cynical laugh he replied.

"No one has the courage to go against you," he pointed out, trying to lighten the mood. "Rather than seperating us I'm sure he and Sayuri-san are simply trying to find a way to make me useful. If you think of it as that they're relying on me, then it's not something to get angry over."

Satsuki just rolled her eyes, not buying it for a second, her sarcastic nature peaking through. "If you say so..." Satsuki held onto his hand, as if it was a lifeline. "Don't leave, ever... I can't lose you too, especially not..."

Tatsuya met her eyes, for the first in the longest time he saw fear in her eyes, but of what? Whatever it was he would protect her, for her sake, for his brother's, but especially for his own. Bring her close in a tight embrace he whispered in assurance. "Never, never ever..."

Xxx

There was a considerable sense of chaos, when Tatsuya entered his classroom. In a similar scene that was no doubt playing throughout the other classrooms, many of the students who'd met each other just yesterday had already formed small groups here and there and were chatting away.

Tatsuya sat at his own desk and set his ID card into the terminal and began looking through all the information available. From course and disciplinary regulations, to rules concerning the use of facilities and the curriculum for the semester, countless flashes of information scrolled through his head as he operated the terminal with just the keyboard. When he looked up, he saw the face of a male student looking back at him from the seat in front with wide eyes. "...It's not like I have a problem with you watching me, but..."

"Eh? Ahh, my bad. It's something pretty rare, so I ended up staring."

"Rare?"

"I'm pretty sure it's rare now, right? This is the first time I have seen someone only using keyboard input."

"If you're experienced, this method is faster. Although between this, visual pointers, and neural assistance, it's also the least accurate."

"Yeah. The speed is amazing. That should be enough to keep you comfortable for quite a while, right?" Without waiting for a response he added. "I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Saijou Leonhart. My father's a half and my mother's a quarter, so while I look Japanese, my name is Western, and my specialty is Convergent Systematic Reinforcement magic. My desired course is to hone my body and become either riot police or a mountain corpsman. You can call me Leo." It was a lengthy introduction.

"I'm Shiba Tatsuya, but Tatsuya's just fine."

"Ok, Tatsuya. So, what magic do you specialize in?"

"My practical skills are severely lacking, so I'm planning on becoming a Magic Engineer." Magic Engineers, or Magic Artificers, referred to those who coordinated, developed and manufactured the machinery that amplified, strengthened and assisted with magic. In terms of social standing they were below that of proper magicians, but the demand for them in the industry was far greater. The income of a top Magic Artificer could readily surpass that of a top magician.

"I see... no wonder you look so smart."

"Eh, what's this? Shiba-kun, you want to become a Magic Artificer?" Erika remarked, appearing out of nowhere.

"Tatsuya, who the heck is this random guy?" Leo asked and pointed at her with some distaste.

"Wha, calling someone a 'random guy' all of a sudden? Not to mention pointing? How rude, how rude! How absolutely rude! This must be why you're not popular!"

"The hell? The rude one here is you! Just cos you're slightly good looking, don't get all stuck up!"

"Looks are very important y'know? Although I suppose someone as sloppy and wild looking as you wouldn't understand. And what's with that slang, that kind of thing is from the wrong century. Why don't you get with the times~?" Erika had a scornful sneer on her face, while Leo was speechlessly sputtering.

"...Erika-chan, please stop. You went a bit too far," Mizuki intervened in an attempt to dispel the volatile air.

"Leo, drop it. You're both wrong and further arguing will be pointless," Tatsuya added.

"...If Mizuki says so," Erika said meekly.

"…Got it," said Leo. "You must be a bitter enemy from some previous life."

"You were some bear ravaging the fields, and I was the hunter hired to get rid of you."

"Enough!" the usually patient and quiet Mizuki said firmly. As Tatsuya watched the two of them with their similar strength of mind and unyielding nature, he couldn't help but think that they were actually rather compatible.

Xxx

One of the reasons Satsuki and Tatsuya settled on First high school was due to their extensive catering facilities, Satsuki was a picky eater and had a small appetite at best, she already skipped breakfast despite his nagging so missing lunch due to the food not suiting her taste was not an option. The dining hall was considerably larger than the cafeterias found in most other high schools, but as it was the start of the school year and new students were still rather unaware and unsure, it was fairly crowded but Tatsuya, Mizuki, Erika and Leo were able to secure a table without any trouble. It only sat four, however Tatsuya hadn't forgotten about Satsuki, as they were facing benches they would probably be able to squeeze three of the more slender girls on one side.

When they were about halfway through their meals (with the exception of Leo who had finished eating and ordered seconds), Satsuki had arrived in the dining hall surrounded by a group of male and female students, in the crowded hall she stood out even when all she did was line up to order food. Carrying her tray, when she spotted Tatsuya she immediately made a beeline towards him, however that was where the dispute began. Satsuki was they type who would quickly refuse to interact with her classmates, however it wasn't just their fellow students who watched her, as a result she had no choice on the matter, but at the end of the day, for her, the top priority was simply Tatsuya. Only one more person could fit at the table. Whether to choose her classmates or Tatsuya was a matter Satsuki didn't even need to consider. However, Satsuki's classmates, especially the boys, were of course striving to sit with her. They had started off pretending to be polite saying that "it's pretty cramped" and "sorry to be a bother", but seeing Satsuki's unwavering determination, had gone on to say that it was unsuitable for a first course student to share a table with second course students considering the gap between them, and ended up telling Leo who had finished eating that he was to vacate his seat. At this selfish display of supreme arrogance, both Erika and Leo were on the verge of exploding.

Tatsuya tensed when he noticed the waning patience in Satsuki's demeanour, to him, she was clearly getting fed up with them. She would protect her kind and gentle image, wouldn't she? No, with a temper like hers, she probably didn't care about the consequences. People were watching her, those who had dictated their lives for so long continued to do so here. Be careful, he wanted to tell her.

"Satsuki, I've almost finished my meal, so eat with your classmates," he suggested. "I'm going to go and explore the research facilities anyway."

Satsuki met his eyes, she was angry, furious even but her posture was relaxed and she held onto that breathtaking smile of hers. "That's perfect, I wanted to go and see the facilities for myself as well!" That wasn't the response he was hoping for. She turned to her classmates and worked her full charm on them. "I'm not very hungry as it is and it would be terribly rude of me to suddenly leave halfway through a meal, so I'll join Tatsuya's group for lunch. I don't want to be impolite. You understand, don't you?" She asked in a calm and warm voice, but her tone gave no room for arguments.

"Of course," her classmates replied. However a few began to object.

"Satsuki, it's fine," Tatsuya said as he began to stand. She placed her tray down on the table and sat next to Erika, who immediately shuffled aside to make more room.

"Sit," she told him, it was a command not a suggestion and so Tatsuya did as she bide. "I'll see you after lunch in class then," she told her classmates with that all too innocent smile. They'd clearly been dismissed, slowly and reluctantly they found a table of their own and sat down.

Erika had a wide smile on her face. "I knew I liked you for a reason," she commented. Satsuki returned the smile with one of her own. Leo, being the only one at the table who had yet to meet Satsuki could only stare at her, he'd never seen anyone so effortlessly beautiful in his entire life. Noticing this Erika smirked. "Oi oi, what's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" she remarked. Satsuki gently elbowed the red head.

"Stop that," she told her, however Erika continued her taunts. "Enough," she said firmly but there was a smile on her lips. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Satsuki, Hagakure Satsuki, and you are?"

Leo struggled to respond. "I'm muscle brains," Erika replied in his stead in a poor imitation of his voice. "Muscle brains egghead, nice to meet you too."

"Hey!" Leo snapped. However to his despair Satsuki found it hilarious and was laughing her heart out. Tatsuya silently watched this little interaction, it's been so long since he last heard that sound he'd almost forgotten it.

Xxx

That very same day after school they took action. After school, Tatsuya had been waiting for Satsuki to go home together, that was when her accompanying classmates had began to accuse him and Erika, Leo and Mizuki stepped in between them. Things quickly deteriorated. It seemed that Satsuki's classmates were determined to seperate them, he knew that in reality all they really wanted was her attention and he was just in the way but he couldn't help but notice the target on his back. Tatsuya didn't know whether to think of it as too quick or just par for the course. All he knew was that if it came to a confrontation or backing down, it would most likely be the former.

On his side Erika and Leo were bright and optimistic, and Mizuki seemed shy yet carefree, Tatsuya considered himself fortunate that they were his first friends in high school, fully aware of his own inclination towards cynicism and moodiness. It was nice that they hadn't backed down, but how would things turn out? Tatsuya calmly contemplating the matter.

Satsuki stood behind him in silence, lightly grasping the hem of Tatsuya's uniform with her fingertips. Her face as she kept her line of sight down and away from the other group was a mixture of boredom and embarrassment on their behalf.

"It's your fault, why do you have to be so desirable," he commented to ease the tension and reassure her, yet to his surprise she rolled her eyes in response, she wasn't worried it seemed, only annoyed.

"Yes yes, but... will you stop them?"

"...That'd be counterproductive."

"...You're right. Still, putting Erika and Muscle brain aside, for Mizuki to have that kind of personality was...unexpected, a welcomed surprise though."

"...I agree."

Directly in front of them were two groups of students glaring at each other with a hostile animosity simmering between them. One group was comprised of some of Satsuki's classmates, and the other was, needless to say, Mizuki, Erika, and Leo.

"Won't you all stop being such poor losers? Satsuki-san has said she wishes to go with Tatsuya-san. It's not the place of any one of you to say otherwise, is it?" The one who had lashed out first at the unreasonable behavior of the first course students was, surprisingly, Mizuki. Her opponent was a student from class A, one of the guys they had seen in the dining hall during the break, the particularly rude one. "Hasn't Satsuki-san treated you guys well enough already? If she wanted to go with you, she would have said so. What right do you have to try and tear those two apart?" While maintaining her polite demeanor, she slammed into them mercilessly. Even now as Mizuki argued against the first course student, her eloquence didn't give an inch.

"I have to admit though, to say that they're trying to tear us apart..." Satsuki muttered under her breath.

Tatsuya sighed, he distinctly felt that something was shifting rather decisively. "Mizuki-san, aren't you misunderstanding something?" Initially glancing at the two with the too good relationship in confusion, their friends, full of compassion, returned their attention back to their opponent and began to heat up more and more.

"We've asked her!" One of Satsuki's male classmates shouted.

"That's right! We're sorry for Hagakure-san, but we just want a little more time!" That was one of Satsuki's female classmates.

What was she, a drug? Tatsuya thought to himself. At their selfishness, Leo gave a hearty laugh.

"Ha! That's just self-justification. Pull the other, it has bells," he shouted back. Another archaic choice of words.

"If you really had asked, maybe you would've had her consent from the start?"Erika also retorted with a smile and edged sarcasm. "You've ignored Satsuki's wishes and didn't consult her or anything. That's harassment, there're rules against that. You're high school students already, don't you know anything?" Even Leo looked dumbstruck, things had escalates quickly.

"Erika-chan, don't you think that was a bit harsh?" Mizuki whispered. Erika's words and attitude, were designed to purposely offend the other party, and as expected they took the bait, one male student in particular.

"Shut up! Another class, much less Weeds, has no right to interfere in matters concerning us Blooms!" Due to its discriminatory nature, the use of the word 'Weed' was prohibited by school regulations. However it was a rule still gradually being learned, but even so it was not exactly a word to be used with so many people listening.

The one who reacted to this rant head-on was, whether to say unexpected or to be expected (probably 'to be expected' really at this point), was again Mizuki. "We are all the same freshmen. You guys are Blooms, but right now just how are you any better than us?" Her voice wasn't particularly loud, but it rang out through the schoolyard.

"...Well."

Thing's are going to get pretty bad, Tatsuya thought, while sighing under his breath. His murmur was drowned out by the angry howls of the first course students, only Satsuki who stood next to him heard.

"...If you want to know just how much better, I can show you."

"Hah, interesting! By all means, show us!" Leo responded aggressively at the first course student's threat. Having come this far, no other outcome than could be expected.

"Then I will!" The course 1 student replied as he pulled out a specialized CAD.

The only ones allowed to carry a CAD in the school were senior members of the student council and certain committee members. While the use of magic off campus was tightly regulated by law however, the mere possession of a CAD off campus was not restricted. There would be no point after all, although CADs were currently indispensable tools for magicians, but they are not essential for the use of magic. Magic could be used even without a CAD. On campus, students were required to leave their CADs at the office before classes started, and to pick them up upon returning home.

The two types of CAD were general and specialized. The general type placed a larger burden on the user but was capable of a wide range of up to 99 activation sequences, while the specialized type only contained up to nine activation, however this made it possible to invoke magic faster. By its nature, aggressive combat type magic sequences were generally stored in specialized CAD. To the screaming onlookers, the 'muzzle' of that specialized CAD, which was shaped like a small handgun, was thrusted at Leo.

That student wasn't just talk. The finesse with which he drew his CAD, along with the speed with which he took aim, were the movements of someone accustomed to fights against magicians.

"Idiots," Satsuki muttered under her breath, however even before Satsuki had finished speaking, Tatsuya's right hand stretched out in front to protect her.

"Ahh!" The scream came from the first course student aiming his CAD as the handgun CAD had been knocked from his hand. Before their eyes, casually swinging a baton that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, in a relaxed manner, stood Erika with a confident smile on her face, she too was accustomed to fighting. "At this distance, the body moves faster," she remarked.

"I agree, but you were planning on whacking my hand as well, weren't you?" The one who replied was Leo, whose hands were frozen in the midst of a grab for the other's CAD.

"A~ra, I wouldn't do something like that."

"Don't laugh it off so unnaturally like that!"

Erika put the back of the hand holding the baton to her mouth and gave off an 'ohohohoho' sound, her deceptive laughter hide her real intentions.

Leo was nearing the end of his patience. "I'm serious. Whether you were going to engage or not, I can tell from your stance...Are you making fun of me? You're making fun of me right to my face?"

"That's why I said you look like an idiot, right?" Forgetting the 'enemy' before them, the two engaged in another comical confrontation, everyone was taken aback, but the one who recovered fastest was a female classmate of Satsuki's. She ran her fingers across her bracelet shaped general CAD, its inbuilt system started up, and began an activation sequence.

"Stop right there! Using attack magic on others for any reason other than self-defense is not just a violation of school rules, it's a criminal offense!" The expanding activation sequence of the female student was shattered by a bullet of Psions. Upon recognizing the owner of that voice, the female student who was intent on attacking Erika and company became pale, and not as a result of the magic. She fell into another female student, and they collapsed.

The one who gave the warning, and had fired the Psion bullet, was the Student Council president, Saegusa Mayumi. Her, as far as Tatsuya had seen, ever-smiling face, even now, did not have much severity in it. However in the eyes of someone capable in magic, her small figure was wrapped in an aura of Psion light far beyond that of any ordinary mage.

"You are students from 1A and 1E, aren't you? I will hear you out. Please come along." A hard, even cold voice, came from the girl next to Mayumi. According to the introduction of the Student Council during the entrance ceremony she was the 3rd year Public Moral Chief, Watanabe Mari. Mari's CAD held an already deployed and expanded activation sequence. It was not difficult to imagine what any form of resistance here would lead to.

Stepping up next to his classmates who were frozen by the atmosphere, without a trace of haughtiness or pride, neither downcast nor timid, Tatsuya walked with an even measured gait, followed by a bored looking Satsuki, to stand before Mari.

Mari cast a quizzical glance at these first years who had suddenly stepped forward. To her, these two had not seemed like involved parties. Satsuki met her gaze without flinching, and they stopped a respectable distance from her.

"We're sorry, the demonstration went too far," Tatsuya apologised.

At those unexpected words, Mari's eyebrows arched up."Demonstration?"

"Yes. Morisaki's quick-draw is famed, so I asked him to give a demonstration for future reference, but it became too lifelike and got out of hand."

The student who had confronted Leo with his CAD opened his eyes wide with surprise. While the other first years were at a loss for words, Mari glanced at the baton in Erika's hand, the pistol shaped device lying on the ground, then after giving the two students who had tried to illegally use their CADs a bloodcurdling look, turned back to Tatsuya with a cold smile. "Then why did that girl from 1A try to use attack magic?"

"She was taken by surprise. Being able to start up activation processes as a conditioned reflex is truly worthy of a first course student." Tatsuya's expression as he answered was deadpan, although his voice was somewhat shameless, Satsuki had to struggle to hide a smirk.

"Your friends were about to be attacked by magic, but you still insist it was a prank?"

"Even if you call it an attack, all she intended to fire was a flash of blinding magic. It wasn't on a level where it could have caused blindness or impairment." There was a collective intake of breath, the sneer turned into admiration.

"Hoou... it seems you're somehow able to read the activation sequence before it's deployed."

"I'm no good at practicals, but I'm confident in my analyses." As if it was nothing, Tatsuya dismissed the insane ability.

"...Your misinformation skills are also quite something." Her look was something in between an appraisal and a glare.

Satsuki stepped up to protect Tatsuya from bearing the brunt of the investigation, Satsuki, came forward. "As Tatsuya said, this was all really just a misunderstanding. We are very sorry for bothering you all, senpai." Tatsuya watched as she lied without giving away a hint of the slightest deceit, she was even more shameless that he was, he thought to himself as she gave a deep bow. As if the miasma was dispelled Mari looked away.

"Mari, it's fine already. Tatsuya-kun, that really was just a demonstration, right?"

When did she start calling me by name? Tatsuya thought, but he couldn't refuse the timely help from Mayumi. As he nodded with the same deadpan expression he had used up to now, Mayumi gave a somewhat triumphant looking smile. Satsuki raised an eyebrow at him, looks like he had some explaining to do once they got home.

"It is not prohibited for students to teach each other, but in terms of exercising magic, you are prohibited from executing it. This is taught in the first semester in the classroom. In terms of self studying the exercise of magic, it's probably best to refrain." Returning to her grave look after Mayumi finished her inspirational speech, Mari also gave a word on the matter.

"...Since the President has said so, I will refrain this time. I don't want there to be a second time." Without looking like bitter enemies, together they straightened and gave a bow. Mari turned around. But after one step, she stopped and asked a question with her back to them. "Your name?" As her head turned, Tatsuya's appearance was reflected in her long narrow eyes.

"First year class E, Shiba Tatsuya."

"I'll remember that."

Holding back his tongue just before he almost instinctively let slip a 'no problem', Tatsuya swallowed a sigh.

"...Don't think I owe you anything." After the committee members had gone out of sight, the one who had acted first, in other words the first course student whom Tatsuya had protected, glared at him.

Tatsuya's expression had a rather 'ah man' look to it. All his friends had one similar to his. Relieved that this normally needlessly excited character wouldn't play up here at least, Tatsuya returned the gaze of the course A student who suddenly grew a spine. "I don't think that at all, so don't worry. What got you off wasn't my glib tongue but rather Satsuki's sincerity." He could practically hear her roll her eyes.

"I came along because even though you're good at talking people down, you have problems convincing them," she replied.

"Indeed." His artificial look of reproach faded, replaced by a wry smile.

"My name is Morisaki Shun. As you thought, I am of the Morisaki house." Seeing the warm banter between them, his hostility faded somewhat, and he gave his name.

"Not honest are you?" Leo remarked. "Why don't you just say thank you and walk away? What are you an idiot?"

"Says the idiot who tried to grab a CAD with his bare hands," Erika scoffed.

"What did you say!?"

"Uhm... that really is dangerous. Psions produced by another magician's activation ritual would cause a rejection by your own subconscious..." Mizuki interjected.

"What she said. Got it?" Erika smirked.

"Erika-chan too, all right? Don't use your hands directly, you'd receive the interference 1000 fold."

"It's fine. This is shielded." As the talk between his friends, meaningful in its own way, finally shifted back in their direction, Tatsuya and Morisaki shared a glance without moving.

"I still don't acknowledge you, Shiba Tatsuya. Kagakure-san's place should be with us." On that note, without waiting for Tatsuya's reply, Morisaki left. He probably said it precisely because it was a line that didn't bear an answer, something his opponent was fully aware of.

"Suddenly calling me by my full name huh." Tatsuya muttered to himself.

Beside him, hearing his murmur, Satsuki remained quiet, aside from a few snide remarks and standing up to Mari she hadn't said much during the conflict. Even without her involvement, Tatsuya's knack for making enemies was a disadvantage for him. It been a long day and she had had enough of Morisaki's prejudices.

"Tatsuya, we're heading back?"

"Yeah, you're right. Leo, Chiba-san, Shibata-san, let's go." Sharing a feeling of mental fatigue, the two of them nodded at the others, and began to leave.

As if to cut them off, to make things worse, a pair of class A girls stood in their way, but their body language clearly indicated they didn't intend to do any more today. Exchanging looks with Satsuki, the moment dragged on. To get rid of them Satsuki was about to bid them farewell, but then the other opened her mouth.

"I'm Mitsui Honoka. I'm sorry for saying all those things earlier." She suddenly bowed, fully honest, and Tatsuya was rather embarrassed. This girl, who earlier wasn't hiding her elitism, to say the least, seemed to have gone about a complete turnaround. "Thank you for protecting me. Morisaki-kun waved it off, but it's thanks to you that it didn't become a huge issue."

"...It was nothing."

"I understand. But thank you very much!" A fierce conviction blazed in her eyes. "And so, um..."

"...What is it?"

"...Is it alright to go together with you to the station?" Nervously, but with a determined conviction hidden in her face, Honoka asked to accompany them. With a sense of surprise not so much at Honoka's words but the unexpectedness of the whole thing, Erika and Mizuki shared a look. Though even then those two, plus Leo and of course Satsuki and Tatsuya, had no reason to refuse, and indeed didn't refuse.

Xxx

At the end of an eventful day Satsuki brewed herself a cup of tea and one of coffee for Tatsuya, instead of waiting for her to finish and bring the drinks into the living room as he usually did, Tatsuya made his way into the kitchen where she worked.

"What's wrong?" Stasuki asked not turning around, she already knew who it was even if it wasn't just the two of them in the house. Tatsuya hesitated to reply, something he rarely did. "If you're just going to stand there and stare at me I don't mind," Satsuki remarked. "I'm something to be admired after all," he couldn't help but smile. "If you want to be useful I could do with a hug." Without hesitation he walked up towards her and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his forehead in the nape of her shoulder and taking in her scent. Satsuki shifted her weight slightly and leaned against him. "What is it Tatsuya, you don't have much of a pokerface you know." Only Satsuki would be able to say such a thing, to others it was impossible to discern his thoughts. Tatsuya tightened his hold, worried that what he had to say might upset her.

"Today, why didn't you do anything?" he asked, although he had a rough idea of the answer.

"Hmm!? Ahh, you mean after school?"

"Yes, you could have stopped it from escalating, very easily in fact. All you had to do was say so, and they would have obeyed no matter their personal feelings, that is the amount of influence that you have on them. What didn't you?" asked Tatsuya.

"Why do you think?" Satsuki asked as she poured milk into her cup.

"Because you wanted things to escalate," he replied. "No, in fact you provoked it, didn't you? I thought that your classmates were acting strange, even more hostile and unreasonable than usual, I couldn't figure out why at first but…"

"Yes, it's amazing what a few whispers here and a few choice words there can do to a group that is already taken over by mob mentality," Satsuki calmly replied. She put down what was in her hands and turned around to face Tatsuya.

"Why would you do such a thing?" Tatsuya asked as she draped her arms over his shoulders and around his neck, Satsuki raised an eyebrow and shrugged, telling him to figure out for himself. "You wanted them angry and riled up enough to attack. Enough to-" he paused when he saw the look in her eyes. "Ahh, I see, but why, why would you do so?"

Satsuki gently brushed his fringe with her fingertips. "Why? Isn't it obvious?" She met his eyes. "Cause they spoke poorly of you."

"That's all?"

"That's all," Satsuki gently stroked his cheek with the back of her hand. "If things went to plan those fools would have been suspended, if they went far enough they would have been expelled or maybe dropped to course 2. Wouldn't that be a laugh, one day they're acting all high and mighty and the next they're part of what they look down upon." She laughed, however it didn't soften the cold look in her eyes. "If spots opened up in course 1, you might have even transferred into my class." She pouted. "But none that happened, all because of you."

"I'm sorry," Tatsuya immediately replied. For me, she was doing all this for me. For my sake… he truly was loved.

"No you're not," Satsuki immediately retorted. "And that's what I like about you, you're so kind, even though you say you have no feelings, you're still kind."

"I didn't do it out of kindness," Tatsuya replied. In his eyes there was only her, she was all that mattered. It wasn't out of a promise or some flimsy vow, it was absolute, his absolute.

"Oh? Then why?"

"The entire incident happened because of me, I didn't want to cause you trouble," he said truthfully. He hadn't helped her classmates for the sake of helping them, but because he didn't want such an occurrence to be associated with Satsuki, he had to protect her, that was all.

"I'm glad, I was worried you were caring about other people," Satsuki confessed. She smiled and rested her head against his chest. "You're mine, remember that. Down to the last drop of blood, down to the last breath, you're mine." More than love, her attachment to him could be better described as an obsession.

"I'm yours," Tatsuya replied, echoing her sentiment. Then again, it was the same for him as well.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

As Satsuki and Tatsuya made their way to school early in the morning, they heard a call of "Tatsuya-kun~~" from behind them that any reasonable bystander would find embarrassing, the voice was accompanied by the rapidly approaching form of a petite individual. "Tatsuya-kun, good morning~ And Satsuki-san as well, good morning."

Compared to Satsuki's greeting, the greeting directed towards himself was quite casual, Tatsuya thought. Then again, perhaps it was due to Satsuki's natural presence that no one really approached her casually, not even the overly friendly Student Council President. However that being said, she was still the 3rd Year Student Council President. "Good morning, President." It was necessary to observe proper protocol, just to be on the safe side.

Immediately following Tatsuya, Satsuki also bowed respectfully. "Good morning," she greeted. As she straightened her back she shot Tatsuya a quick look and he was immediately reminded of the conversation they had the night before.

_"Tatsuya, do you know the student council president personally by any chance?" she asked as the two relaxed on the living room couch._

_"Not to my recollection, why?" he replied. Satsuki didn't respond immediately._

_"She seemed a little too familiar with you today, don't you think?" The warning bells in Tatsuya's head started ringing. She was jealous, even though there was no reason for her to be so. It would be adorable were it not so dangerous. The correct route was to simply agree with anything that she said._

_"Yes," he immediately agreed. "Absolutely."_

"I would like to speak with Satsuki-san about a few things. I meant to find an opportunity to speak with you in detail earlier but, do you have any plans during lunch break?" Mayumi asked. The comment directed towards Satsuki was spoken in an approachable tone, but on a different level compared to their earlier conversation. Satsuki smiled and replied that they had none, Tatsuya noticed a slight bitterness in her words, perhaps the remnants of the day before? "That's perfect, would you mind coming by the Student council room then? I better hurry, I have a meeting in 20 minutes. I'll see you then! Bring your lunch with you~" She added before hurrying off to school ahead of them.

"She's oddly chipper this early in the morning," Satsuki muttered under her breath. Tatsuya smiled and shook his head. That was true.

Xxx

That day, lunch break seemed to arrive rather quickly.

Tatsuya waited outside Satsuki's classroom, receiving glares from her classmates as they exited but not even they could say anything today. No doubt they'd already heard from someone who heard it from someone else on campus that this time someone far above them had monopolised Satsuki's company. Their destination was at the end of the hallway on the fourth floor. From the outside, they were all the same. They all had the same wooden doors. What was different was the wooden engraving embedded in the door that clearly displayed the words "Student Council Room".

The invitation was for Satsuki, Tatsuya was purely complementary, thus the job of knocking fell to on her shoulders, once they'd declared their presence, Tatsuya placed his hand on the door knob and opened the door, adopting a stance that shielded Satsuki on the way inside. In reality, there was nothing that called for such a response something Tatsuya was well aware of, however it was a behaviour was something deeply ingrained into their daily activities.

"Welcome. Don't mind us, please come in." Mayumi greeted them warmly from the other side of the table.

Satsuki led the way into the room, followed hurriedly by Tatsuya. He stopped one step from the door, with Satsuki was two steps. With both hands slightly before her, Satsuki bowed in greeting, a textbook example of formality. When compared to such a honed movement, Tatsuya had no chance of imitating it. Satsuki's speech and movement patterns were completely different from Tatsuya's after all.

"Eh... No need to be so formal." After watching Satsuki execute a perfect greeting that would not be out of place in a formal gala, Mayumi seemed to shrink a little. Even though there were two other members in attendance, they seemed to be overwhelmed by the atmosphere as well. There was one other person present that was not a member of the Student Council. The representative from the Public Moral Committee wore a mask of composure, but anyone could tell that was a brave front, not to mention a veteran observer like Tatsuya.

She's is quite motivated today, Tatsuya thought. The only thing that puzzled Tatsuya was exactly why Satsuki chose such an intimidation tactic, he couldn't help but think that Mayumi herself was a factor.

"Please sit. We can talk while we eat." Maybe it was because Satsuki's opening salvo rattled her, but Mayumi's voice had changed. Mayumi was seated in the main chair. To her side and directly across from Satsuki sat another 3rd Year female student. One seat over was the Public Moral Committee member, who was across from Tatsuya, and a small petit girl sat next on the other side of the committee member. After regaining her bearings a little, Mayumi began. "Introductions were exchanged at the enrollment ceremony, but just in case, let's go over this again. To my side is our Accountant, Ichihara Suzune, also known as Rin-chan."

"…The only one who calls me that is the President." Every part of her solemn face gave off a stern impression, though with her tall frame and willowy limbs, Suzune would have done full justice to the description of "beauty". It must be admitted that "Rin-chan" fit her profile better than "Suzune".

"The two of you should know the one on Rin-chan's side, right? This is the Chair of the Public Moral Committee Watanabe Mari." Mari didn't say anything. "And following that is our Secretary, Nakajou Azusa, also known as A-chan."

"Student Council President... Please don't call me 'A-chan' in front of the underclassmen. I have my position to think of too." She was even more petite than Mayumi and possessed a childlike face, as a result whenever Azusa directed a teary-eyed face upwards, she unintentionally gave off the impression of a child about to cry.

And that would probably be the reason she is called "A-Chan", Tatsuya thought. That might be too cruel a truth for the person in question.

"The last one would be Vice President Hanzou. And that makes up all the members of the Student Council Committee. Ah, the preparations are complete." The cover to the Dinner Server which was situated in the corner of the room opened, presenting neat and proper meals without a hint of character on a series of trays. There were only five meals.

We're short one… Tatsuya noted, perhaps they did not anticipate his participation. While Tatsuya was processing this, Mari quietly took out a bento box. Seeing Azusa stand up, Satsuki also began to rise in her seat however Tatsuya immediately stopped her and went himself instead. An act that did not go unnoticed. As its name implied, the Dinner Server was capable of producing meals, but without a matching table set, it was more efficient to manually bring the trays over. Azusa first put her tray on the table, then brought Mayumi and Suzune's portions as well. Following that, Tatsuya carried over the two trays for Satsuki and himself, and with that a most interesting lunch began.

"Did you make that bento yourself, Watanabe-senpai?" Satsuki's intention simply to initiate a conversation.

"Yes, are you surprised?" However when asked, Mari replied with a teasing question of her own that was difficult to answer. In reality, Mari did not intend to torment Satsuki, but wanted to play a small joke on this seemingly sensible and polite underclassman. However it didn't seem to work in the slightest, in fact it backfired on her.

"Perhaps just a little," Satsuki replied with a smile and wink that made Mari blush. "Tatsuya, let's start bringing bentos of our own tomorrow." When Satsuki spoke as if nothing had happened, Tatsuya also shifted his line of sight.

"Why do I have a feeling that it'll end up with me doing all the clean up while you cook?" Tatsuya replied jokingly, after all, there were machines for such things.

Satsuki crinkled her nose at him. "That just cause you're a terrible cook," she snapped back. Tatsuya smiled warmly at her.

"Satsuki's bentos certainly are incredible, but where would we eat them? I really don't want to end up sharing my lunch with Leo or Erika," he added, she giggled.

"Haha, that's true, they seem like the type don't they? We would be fending off their chopsticks the entire meal." Their dialogue, not only the contents, but the atmosphere itself, seemed a little too intimate for a pair who claimed to just be childhood friends.

"…Just like a pair of lovers." Suzune adopted a smile that was not a smile, and dropped an explosive comment. Satsuki flinched and her smile dropped at the reminder of her late fiancé, it'd been 3 years but the wounds he left were still fresh. Tatsuya's eyes narrowed and everyone else in the room also noticed her sudden discomfort.

"Is that so? Well I don't particularly mind, out of everyone that I've met Satsuki is the one person I find myself most compatible with. Above all, she's quite beautiful don't you think? If we weren't best friends, we would be lovers, don't you agree?" Tatsuya calmly countered and quickly defused the explosion. Satsuki, knowing that he was making a joke, rolled her eyes. However from everyone else's expressions it was more likely accidentally detonated it. Azusa's cheeks were completely red, Tatsuya mirrored Suzune's earlier "smile" and calmly continued. "…Of course, that was a joke." His face was not disturbed in the slightest.

"You, are quite boring," Mari said in an exasperated tone.

"I think so too." Tatsuya replied in an even manner that made Satsuki giggle, seeing that her smile had return was like a breath of fresh air.

"Ok, Ok, let's end this subject here. Mari, I know it's tough to swallow, but Tatsuya-kun is just a difficult person to handle." Mayumi intervened with a slightly bitter smile, perhaps because she foresaw that this conversation would go on perpetually.

"Your expressions are so deadpanned, no one can tell wether you're joking or not," Satsuki told Tatsuya affectionately.

"It's about time we get to the point." Both Tatsuya and Satsuki nodded upon hearing Mayumi's words. "Just as our school places heavy emphasis on self determination, the Student Council has been granted vast powers within the confines of the school. Not only our school, but most public high schools have also adopted a similar method. Our Student Council uses the traditional method of concentrating the power and authority in the president. This presidential style can also be described as extreme centralization."

Hearing these words triggered some unease, though this would probably be discourteous to Mayumi. Tatsuya tightly clasped his fist under the table, noticing this Satsuki placed one hand over his.

"The president is elected by the student body, the other members are appointed by the president. With a few exceptions, the president has the right of appointment and removal for all officers. The Chair of the Public Moral Committee is one of those exceptions. The Student Council, the Club Management Group, and the teachers each select a representative to determine this position. And because of this, on some level I holds the same authority Mayumi do. Under the rules, the president has a term period, but the others do not. The term lasts from October 1 to September 30 of the next year. Between this time, the president has the right of appointment and removal for all officers," Mari added.

Tatsuya did not interrupt, but merely nodded to indicate he understood, however he was waiting for them to get to the point.

"There is an annual tradition to invite the 1st Year representative to the Student Council, with the intent of training them to become the successor. Hopefully, the 1st Year representative will be elected to be the next Student Council President. Although it is not a guarantee, this has been the case for the past 5 years. So… Satsuki-san, I hope you can enter the Student Council. Are you willing to accept?"

Satsuki's expression did not change nor did it give anything away. However Tatsuya knew that joining the Student council let alone being groomed to be the next Student Council president was not something she would willing do. If Satsuki had any choice in the matter, Tatsuya already knew her response would be 'No, can't be bothered'. However she had no such freedom. Taking a breath, Satsuki looked down at her hands, before raising her eyes towards Tatsuya in question. I really don't want to, her eyes said. But I don't really have a choice do I?

Tatsuya shrugged, suppressed his own feelings, he didn't want to force her into anything she didn't want to. But perhaps accepting the position would ease some of the pressure on her. She should accept… To convey this he slightly nodded his head. Satsuki lowered her head again before raising it. This time however, her eyes were lit in the manner of someone about to take a plunge. Recognising the look in her eyes, Tatsuya braced himself.

"President, are you aware of Tatsuya's entrance examination scores?" At this completely unexpected development, it was all Tatsuya could do to remain silent.

"Hm, I know of it. Truly incredible... To be honest, when I stole a glance at the teacher's results, even I lost confidence," Mayumi replied.

"If the student council accepts students with high test scores and outstanding abilities, I believe Tatsuya fits the criteria as well."

"Wait, Sa-" began Mayumi.

"And in terms of Desk Work (Theoretical Manipulation), I believe that has nothing to do with practical skills and grades. In other words, knowledge and judgment are more important." For Satsuki to not allow the other person, other than Tatsuya, to finish their sentence and bulling right over them was quite the rare occurrence. "I am honoured to receive an invitation to the Student Council. However, I sincerely believe that in this situation that Tatsuya is far more qualified than I will ever be."

Tatsuya really wanted to cover his face and look skywards. She intended to foist the position and responsibility and work that came with it onto him, how did he not see this coming? Instead of blatant nepotism it was pure avoidance on her part.

"Alas, this is not possible." The one who answered was not the President, but the council member sitting to her side. "Student Council members must be selected from Course 1 students. This is not an unwritten rule, but an enumerated one. This is the only clause that is attached to the right of appointment and removal for the president. To change this requires a special amendment meeting with the attendance of the full student body and carried by a two-thirds majority. Since the number of Course 1 and Course 2 students are practically equal, this is realistically impossible." Suzune said softly in a tone that was slightly apologetic. From her voice, it was obvious that she too was someone that was against the differential treatment between Blooms and Weeds.

Satsuki looked back down at her hands, to others it seemed to be in repentance however Tatsuya knew better. "...I apologize. I said all of that without understanding the situation. Please forgive me." She could only frankly admit her mistake, Satsuki rose to her feet and bowed deeply in apology, but no one reprimanded her.

"In that case, Satsuki will join the current Student Council with the title of secretary, is that acceptable?"

"Yes, I will work hard to fulfill my duties. Please look after me." Satsuki lowered her head again, but this time it was more out of being polite than apologetic. Mayumi nodded at Satsuki with a smile on her face.

"You can get the details from A-chan."

"As I just said, President... Please stop calling me A-chan…" was the feeble reply.

"If there are no complications, can you come today after school?" Completely ignoring the tearful protests on the side, Mayumi continued her conversation.

"Of course," Satsuki replied, her voice showing no indication of the reluctance that she harboured.

"Then I'll see you then, Satsuki-san."

"Hey~ Why am I called 'A-chan', while she's called 'Satsuki-san'…?" On some level this was a valid question, but was once again ignored. Tatsuya started to pity Azusa a little.

"...There is still a little time left until the end of lunch break. May I say something?" The reason that everyone ignored Azusa, and not out of spite or mischievousness either, was probably because everyone's attention was directed towards the hand Mari raised in the air. "The roster for the Public Moral Committee still has one empty spot that has not been filled."

"I just said that we are still reviewing possible candidates. Besides, school just started a week ago, right? There's no need to hurry, Mari." Displeased with Mari's hastiness, Mayumi admonished her. However, Mari didn't seem to care.

"I think, according to the rules of the student council, all members aside from the president must be Course 1 students, right?"

"Yes." Mayumi nodded in confirmation while her expression said that it couldn't be helped.

"Only Course 1 students are allowed to fill the positions of Vice President, Accountant, Secretary, and related roles, right?"

"Yes. The rules stipulate that the council is made up of the President, Vice president, Accountant, and Secretary roles."

"In other words, there is no restriction for bringing a Course 2 student into the Public Moral Committee."

"Mari, you…" Mayumi's eyes widened, while Suzune and Azusa both wore similarly shocked expressions. This proposal was every bit as surprising as Satsuki's earlier suggestion.

"NICE!"

"Ah?" Coinciding with Mayumi's delighted outburst, Tatsuya let out a dull surprise.

"Yes, there's no problem with the Public Moral Committee. Mari, the Student Council nominates Shiba Tatsuya as Public Moral Committee member." An unexpected development happened within an instant.

"Wait a minute! Shouldn't you take into account my thoughts on the matter? Also, you haven't told me what the duties of a Public Moral Committee member consists of." Rather than objecting from a logical perspective, it was more important to listen to the instincts that warned of a dangerous development.

"We didn't really go into detail about Satsuki-san's duties on the Student Council, correct?"

"…No, that's true, but..." Unfortunately, Tatsuya's objection was immediately countered by Suzune's comment.

"Eh, Rin-chan, this is fine. Tatsuya-kun, the job of the Public Moral Committee is to uphold the public moral on campus."

"...Is that all?"

"While the job doesn't come with any sense of accomplishment, and is also quite troublesome... Err, it's still a rewarding task?" Disregarding the fact that Mayumi tried to hide her words behind her smile. The more important thing was that Tatsuya didn't think they were going to listen to him seriously regardless.

"That wasn't what I meant."

"Ah, OK. The primary duties of the Public Moral Committee are to identify those that use magic against school rules and to subjugate those that use magic on campus to cause a disturbance. After the Public Moral Committee member decides the necessary punishment, he or she will present before the Disciplinary Committee alongside the President and Student Representative. In short, they are both the police and the prosecutor."

"Isn't that wonderful, Tatsuya," Satsuki remarked her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"No, Satsuki... Please wait a little before giving off that 'Then it's decided' look in your eyes…" Perhaps it would be better to have described it as a 'If I have to do this bullshit, so do you' look. "Just in case, let me clarify a few things." Tatsuya was not focused on Azusa who just finished her explanations, but on Mari instead. "According to the earlier explanation, the Public Moral Committee member's mission is to halt any conflicts upon discovery, correct?"

"Well, that's true. We also intercede on non-magical conflicts," she replied. "Also, if magic was used, our intervention is mandatory. If possible, it'd be best if the conflict was resolved prior to use of magic."

"That's my point! My technical grade is terrible, and on top of that, I'm a Course 2 student!" Finally, even Tatsuya started to raise his volume. This task clearly requires overwhelming magical prowess to subjugate the opponent. No matter from what angle of consideration, this task was not suited for Course 2 students with poor technical skills. However, despite Tatsuya's questioning, Mari remained completely unperturbed and replied with a simple comment.

"It's not a problem."

"What are you saying?"

"In competitions of power, I will handle it..."

Tatsuya suppressed any unreasonable feelings and nodded his head. Beside him, Satsuki who had remained relatively quiet throughout the meeting groaned, finally, would she put a stop to this nonsense. However, instead she said.

"Have you ever drunk so much water at once that your stomach makes swishing noises inside your tummy when you move?"

"...no," Tatsuya's expression didn't change. However everyone else had a small smile on their lips."Why did you drink so much?"

"Unlike you, I get nervous and this was a very emotionally taxing meeting."

"Lunch break is almost over. Let's save the rest for after school, any objection?" Maru suggested. It was true that lunch break was about to end, and doubly true that this subject could not simply be glossed over.

"…I understand." Tatsuya had lost his last chance to object thanks to Satsuki's interruption. He fully understood that if he entered this room after school, he would have to enter this quagmire again, but he didn't have any other choice.

"Then we'll meet again here."

Satsuki resisted the urge to whisper 'sucks to be you'.

Xxx

After school, Tatsuya headed towards the Student Council room, dragging even heavier footsteps than during lunch break. Although the atmosphere surrounding the circumstances was a little pitiful, because Satsuki could understand Tatsuya's feelings, she remained silent. Immediately upon entering the room, there was a sharp gaze tinged with hostility. The source came from the opposite side of the machine in the wall, in a seat that was unoccupied during lunch break.

"Excuse us!"

It was hard to say whether it was out of sorrow or pride, but Tatsuya was already accustomed to this type of gaze and atmosphere. He maintained his poker face, bowed in silence, and with that the hostile gaze dissipated like rainclouds before the sun. Even then, it wasn't as if the hostility had disappeared completely, more like the previous hostile gaze was now directed in a more favorable light towards Satsuki, who now stood protectively in front of him.

The owner of this gaze stood up and walked towards them. No, more like walked towards Satsuki. Tatsuya remembered his face. On the day of enrolment, he was the 2nd Year student standing closely behind Mayumi as if awaiting orders, thus making him the Student Council Vice President. The Vice President stood roughly as tall as Tatsuya. The difference was that his shoulders were a little narrower. He had a handsome visage that did not warrant additional words to describe, and an unremarkable build. He did not give off a robust impression, but from the way psion light densely clung to the air around his body, he must be a young man with considerable Magic Power.

"I am the Vice President, Hattori Gyoubu. Shiba Satsuki, welcome to the Student Council." His voice was a little abnormal, but considering his age he was probably suppressing any personal reaction.

Hattori returned to his seat while completely ignoring Tatsuya. A displeased aura was gathering around Satsuki, but that too disappeared in an instant. The only one who noticed was probably Tatsuya, thanks to his proximity. Thankfully she managed to control her temper. The Vice President was completely unaware of Tatsuya's worries — though that shouldn't be surprising, given they just met — or the source them. Just then, two very casual greetings flew in.

"Ah, you're here. Welcome, Satsuki-san. You too, Tatsuya-kun. Good work." From the way Mari casually raised a hand in greeting, she was already treating Tatsuya as one of them. Mayumi was the complete opposite. Her attitude was much different from before. Then again, most groups would be upset if an outsider were to intrude, although no outburst actually happened. Tatsuya, much like everyone else, had long since arrived at the conclusion that trying to understand these two was a hopeless cause.

"In that case, no need to delay. A-chan, if you please."

"…Yes." It appeared that she already gave up. For a moment, Azusa's head drooped with a sad expression before she put on a wooden smile and led Satsuki towards the terminal on the side.

"Well, let's be off." Mari instructed, it hasn't even been a whole day yet and she's already speaking so casually. Maybe flightiness is part of her character, Tatsuya thought.

"Where to?" Then again, Tatsuya's background was not privileged enough for him to care about anyone else's word choice. He replied in the shortest, most efficient method possible.

"Public Moral Committee headquarters. There's a lot of things you need to see firsthand to understand. It's located directly underneath this room. That being said, they're both connected." After Mari finished speaking, Tatsuya took a breath before replying.

"...That's quite the strange design."

"I thought so too." As she was saying this, Mari began to stand up. But just as she was about to leave the chair, a comment stopped her.

"Watanabe-senpai, please wait a minute." The voice came from Vice President Hattori. Upon hearing this, Mari replied in a manner that to this day Tatsuya still cannot get used to.

"Is something the matter, Hattori Gyoubushoujou Hanzou?"

"Please don't address me by my full name!"

Tatsuya glanced at Mayumi. Seeing Tatsuya's gaze, Mayumi tilted her head with a "Hm?"

You're telling me that "Hanzou" is actually his real name... Completely. Unexpected.

"Then let's go with Vice President Hattori Hanzou."

"Please call me Hattori Gyoubu!"

"That's your family's official title, isn't it."

"It has nothing to do with the title now. The school has already accepted the name 'Hattori Gyoubu'! ...No, that's not what I wanted to say."

"That's because you're too formal, isn't it?"

"Ok, ok, Mari, Hanzou also has things he won't back down from." Everyone's gaze fell towards the speaker, Mayumi. You're hardly qualified to say that. But Mayumi had no reaction at all. Probably because she didn't realize it.

More to the point, why hadn't Hattori said anything? This was slightly different than not being accustomed to speaking with the President. Even when confronting Mari, Hattori's expression had not changed. But compared to his expression then, Tatsuya found that to be very interesting. Of course, that was only under the condition that he was a spectator. Alas, the time allotted to a spectator is very short.

"Watanabe-senpai, the topic I wanted to speak with you about is precisely regarding the replacements for the Public Moral Committee." The blood that had originally caused Hattori's face to flush completely red had now receded. Just like the slow-motion screening for an animation, Hattori had calmed himself.

"What?"

"I object to you appointing this 1st Year student to the Public Moral Committee." When Hattori stated his opinion, he was either perfectly calm, or was forcibly holding his emotions in check.

Mari's eyebrows wrinkled slightly, and that did not appear to be an act. Tatsuya couldn't tell if she was merely surprised or irritated by this. "What is this nonsense? The one who nominated Shiba Tatsuya-kun is President Saegusa. Even though it was verbal, the right of appointment remains with her alone."

"I have heard that the receiving party has not agreed. Despite the nomination, the matter is unofficial until he personally agrees."

"That is up to Shiba Tatsuya-kun himself. The President has already elaborated on the decision of the Student Council. The final decision is his, not yours." Mari's eyes were on Hattori while she said this. Hattori never looked at Tatsuya. Or maybe it would be more correct to say that he was ignoring Tatsuya's presence.

Watching these two people, Suzune was very calm, Azusa was very nervous, and Mayumi was completely unreadable, sitting there with a traditional smile on her face. Satsuki was staring at the terminal on the side with a subtle expression on her face. However, she was probably a hair trigger away from exploding at any time. For entirely different reasons, both Tatsuya and Azusa were growing very worried.

"There is no precedence for appointing a Weed to the Public Moral Committee." Hattori's rebuttal was laced with the derogatory term. Upon hearing this, Mari slightly raised an eyebrow.

"That's a taboo term, Vice President Hattori. A taboo term as banned by the Public Moral Committee. You have a lot of nerve using that in front of me, the Chair of the Public Moral Committee."

Facing Mari's reprimand, warning, or maybe a little of both, Hattori showed no sign of weakness. "You can ban that term all you want. Do you plan on punishing a third of the entire student body? The difference between Blooms and Weeds is something that is written into the school system and acknowledged by the school itself. The source of the difference between Blooms and Weeds is the difference in ability. Public Moral Committee members are responsible for the task of subjugating students that break school rules. A Weed with inferior abilities is incapable of accomplishing that task." To Hattori's proud assertion, Mari only smiled coldly.

"It is true that the Public Moral Committee is ability-based, but ability comes in many forms. If we need to use strength for suppression, that's what I'm here for. Even if I'm up against 10 or even 20 opponents, I can handle them alone. In this school, the only people that can go 1 on 1 against me are President Saegusa and Club Management Group Leader Juumonji. According to you, the people with low combat capability are unnecessary. So, do you plan to challenge me, Vice President Hattori?" The only way that Mari would say this was because of her confidence and combat record. However, despite slightly backing down before this enormous pressure, Hattori had no plans to surrender.

"This isn't my problem. It's about his ability to adapt." The bottom line was that Hattori believed his stance was correct. Course 2 students with inferior abilities could not handle the responsibilities of the Public Moral Committee that were so heavily reliant on ability. The fact that no Course 2 student had ever been appointed to the Public Moral Committee also supported this. In spite of this, Mari's confidence surpassed Hattori.

"Did I not say that ability comes in many forms? Tatsuya-kun can read the activation sequence and thus accurately predict the magic being invoked with his eyes and brain."

"…What did you say?" Upon hearing this unexpected detail, Hattori reflexively asked. Rather than saying this was unexpected, it would be more appropriate to say this was impossible to believe. Reading the activation sequence. This by all rights should be impossible. For Hattori, that was "common sense".

"In other words, even before the magic has been invoked, he already knows what magic his opponent is using." However, Mari's answer did not change. This was the truth, was definitely possible, and Mari had no doubts whatsoever as she said it. "According to our school rules, depending on the type of magic used, the level of punishment also changes. Unfortunately, if we were to disrupt the activation sequence before invocation like Mayumi did, there is no way to tell what magic was originally used. If we waited until the activation sequence finished, then that would defeat the entire purpose. Thus it is safer to disrupt magic during the activation sequence. Without any definite accusation of wrong doing, the only thing we can charge them with is attempted disruption and the subsequent lighter punishment. But with Tatsuya, we can properly catch those that have been using stronger magics."

"…But, if he ran across an actual crime scene, and was unable to stop the magic invocation..." Hattori could not overcome his shock, but still managed to rebut.

"In that case, it would be beyond a 1st Year Course 1 student anyways. And probably beyond 2nd Year students as well. How many people do you know that are able to invoke second and still manage to deny their opponent from invoking first? Besides that, there is still one more reason I want him to join the Public Moral Committee." Mari tabled the first reason and started another. No matter what, Hattori couldn't come up with a counter argument on the spot. "To this day there is no Public Moral Committee member that comes from Course 2 students. In other words, Course 2 students that improperly use magic against school rules are apprehended by Course 1 students. As you said, there is a wide divide between Course 1 and Course 2 students. Course 1 students can apprehend Course 2 students, but the reverse is not true. This configuration has only served to widen that divide. I do not like it that the committee members under my command are only serving to widen this differential impression."

"Ah... Quite impressive, Mari. You have even taken this into account? I thought you only cared about Tatsuya-kun."

"Please be quiet, President." Mayumi wanted to change the surrounding atmosphere, but was stopped by Suzune. A reproachful look. A shaking head. The former was from Mayumi, the latter from Suzune. And so, two conflicting emotions were mixed together into one inseparable whole, and came bursting out with resentment.

"President… as the Vice-President, I object to appointing Shiba Tatsuya as a Public Morals Committee member. While I accept that Chair Watanabe has got a point in her assertion, the original mission of a Public Morals Committee member is to uncover and subjugate the school rule breakers. A Course 2 student who is lacking in magic ability can't perform the duties of a Public Morals Committee member. Such a misplaced appointment will surely damage your reputation as the President. Please reconsider."

"Enough." Tatsuya turned around frantically. Just as he had feared, Satsuki could no longer bear with it. Absorbed in Mari's speech, he had missed the right timing to restrain her. While he frantically attempted to preemptively stop her, Satsuki, who had started speaking, was faster. "This may sound audacious, Vice-President. Tatsuya's practical magic results may indeed be unfavourable, but that was merely because the practical test was not effective in gauging his strength. In a real battle, he would not lose to anyone, especially not you."

On hearing those words that were filled with certainty, Mari's eyes widened a little. Mayumi's faint smile disappeared as well, and her serious eyes turned towards Satsuki and Tatsuya. However, the seriousness in the gaze Hattori returned on Satsuki became thinner.

"Kagakure-san. Regardless of what happens, a Magician must make judgments calmly and logically. Individual bias may be unavoidable for a normal person, but for one who is aiming to become a Magician, please bear in mind that you should not let your individual bias cloud your judgment." There was no kindness felt in the admonishment. He was probably just acting as an excellent "Upperclassman" who, despite his self-righteousness, was looking after his junior of the same Course 1. But, under these circumstances, Tatsuya seemed to know that such a manner of speaking would cause the opposite effect.

Sure enough, Satsuki was getting increasingly heated up. "Pardon me for saying so, but my judgment is not clouded! If Tatsuya could use more of his power... he could!" Satsuki's eyes suddenly lit up.

Oh dear, Tatsuya thought to himself.

"Vice-President Hattori, why don't we have a mock battle?" she suggested. Tatsuya wanted to walk over to the nearest wall and slam his head repeatedly against it, why didn't he see this coming? It was Satsuki after all and this was exactly something she would do.

"What…?" The people who were lost for words from the surprise request were not limited to the challengee, Hattori, alone. Mayumi, and also Mari, looked at the two of them in dumbfounded amazement from the unexpected daring everyone's gaze, Hattori's body started quivering. "I tried to warn you Kagakure-san! Please do not insult me, for me to fight against a mere reserve!" A small smile appeared on Satsuki's lips. "What's so funny?!"

"A Magician should remain calm at all times, isn't that right senpai?" She asked her voice dripping with honey, Tatsuya rolled his eyes.

"Kuh!" Having his own words thrown back at him in ridicule, Hattori held his breath. Satsuki didn't want to stop there. She did not feel like stopping, sensing this Tatsuya finally stepped in.

"Satsuki," he cautioned, stepping between them. "As it is, I think that we won't know each other's anti-personnel battle skill without fighting. It's not like I want to become a Public Morals Committee member but… if it's for proving that the one who's most precious to me's judgment is not clouded, then it cannot be helped." To his upperclassman, judging by the term he used to describe Satsuki, he seemed to be mumbling to himself. To Hattori however, it sounded like a challenge.

"...Fine. I'll give you a good lesson on what it is to know your place." It was not just his mouth that had betrayed his agitation. His controlled tone, on the contrary, indicated the depth of his anger. Without a moment's delay, Mayumi interjected.

"As the Student Council President, I authorize the formal mock battle match between 2nd Year Class B, Hattori Gyoubu and 1st Year Class E, Shiba Tatsuya."

"On the basis of the Student Council President's declaration, as the Chair of Public Morals Committee, I recognise that the match between the two of you as a legitimate extracurricular activity in abidance of the school rules. The time of the match will be thirty minutes from now, at the third practice room. The match will be a private one, and I authorise the use of CADs by both sides." It was a measure to prevent the match from becoming a brawling incident — an act of violence forbidden by the school rules. On the declaration from Mayumi and Mari with solemn expressions and nonchalant voices, Azusa started typing furiously into the terminal.

Xxx

"It's just the third day of school, just my third day of high school and already I'm in a fight…" Tatsuya grumbled just before the door to the third practice room after retrieving his CAD case in exchange for the approval letter stamped with the student council president's stamp.

"I'd apologise…" Satsuki began, her hands together behind her back as she chewed at the inside of one of her cheeks.

"You're tone says otherwise," Tatsuya pointed out, she shrugged.

"Well, technically it's my fault…" She refused to meet his eyes, placing a hand under her chin he lifted her line of sight to see the anger still festering inside of her.

"I said this too during the school entrance ceremony, right? I always feel that I'm being saved by you whenever you get angry in my place, when I am unable to get angry myself." Satsuki rolled her eyes, making his smile. "Don't apologise then. Now is the time to say something more appropriate."

"Yes… go kick some arse." Getting on the tips of her toes Satsuki planted a kiss on his cheek and smiled. In similar fashion, Tatsuya smiled as well and opened the door to the practice room.

"This is surprising." Upon opening the door, this was the line said to him.

"What is?" The one who was receiving Tatsuya at the door, was the appointed judge for this match, Mari.

"I was referring to your unexpected enthusiasm at fighting. I thought you were one who wasn't bothered by the remarks of others." Even while she was talking about her surprise, her eyes were sparkling with anticipation. A deep sigh welled up in his throat, but Tatsuya, with his steel-like self-restraint — describing it in this manner may be a little exaggerating but — swallowed it anyway.

"I thought it was the job of a Public Morals Committee member to stop personal fights." Instead of a sigh, he couldn't help but let loose a somewhat sarcastic remark.

While there was not a single sign of Mari rebutting that. "This is not a personal fight. It's a formal match. Mayumi said it too, didn't she? The rule of strength is not something applied between the Course 1 and Course 2 students. Rather, it is something applied between Course 1 students themselves. This is the very first time we are using such a method to settle things between a Course 1 and Course 2 student, you see."

I see. On the contrary, it is encouraged to settle disagreements by force if they can't be settled by words alone, Tatsuya bought to himself. As if reading his mind, Satsuki giggled. "Didn't the number of 'formal matches' increase ever since you became the Chair of the Public Morals Committee, senpai?"

"Indeed, it did increase." Her calm attitude caused not just Tatsuya, but even Satsuki who was waiting behind him to smile wryly. Then, Mari suddenly turned serious and brought her face close. "Well, are you confident?" At a distance where he could hear her breathing, she asked in a whisper. "Hattori is skilled enough to be among the top five in our school. If I have to say, he's more inclined towards group battles, and individual fights are not his specialty, but still, there is hardly anyone who can win against him in one-on-one." In an alluring high pitch voice, Mari whispered those words which were devoid of any sexual charm.

"I'm not thinking of fighting him head on." Without the slightest sign of wavering, Tatsuya replied in a voice which could be said to be more a mechanical than cold.

"You are pretty calm... I've lost a little confidence." While saying that, Mari was clearly amused. Without saying anything else, Tatsuya gave a vague nod. "At a time like this, if your face turns red, which will make you cuter, the number of people who will lend you their strength will increase, I think." Grinning as she stepped back, Mari then walked to the starting line in the centre. "What a troublesome fella..."

She's probably the type who would seek chaos in order and bring about order in chaos, thought Tatsuya. To a person living in tranquility, she was a troublemaker. While letting out his first sigh at his human relationships, which were filled with remarkable ups and downs ever since entering this school, he opened his CAD case. The black attaché case contained a pair of CADs in the shape of handguns. He took out one of them, pulled out a cartridge shape from the place where a magazine would be lodged into a real gun, and exchanged it for something else. Except for Satsuki, everyone watched him intently with deep interest. "Sorry for the wait."

"Do you always carry additional storage cartridges with you?"

The number of activation sequences that could be used with a Specialized CAD was limited. In contrast to the Generalized CAD which could store up to ninety-nine types of Activation Sequences without regard to the systems of magic, the Specialized CAD could only store nine. To remedy this disadvantage, CAD devices that could store alternate, exchangeable Activation Sequences were developed, but since Specialized CADs were originally intended for Magicians who were strong in specific Magic Sequences, the need for an increased arsenal of magic was not too high. More often than not, even when multiple storage were carried, most still relied on using one type of magic. However, from Tatsuya's answer to Mari's curiosity, it would have been safe to assume he belonged to the minority.

"Yes, I am unable to smoothly operate the Generalized CAD as I can't cope well with them." Hattori, who was standing across from him, sneered slightly upon hearing this, but this did not impact Tatsuya's mindset in the slightest.

"Alright, allow me to explain the rules. In terms of either direct or indirect attacks, lethal attacks are forbidden. Techniques that deal permanent disabilities to the opponent are also forbidden. Abilities that cause direct harm to the physical body are forbidden. However, direct attacks that do not result in anything greater than bone fractures are permitted. No weapons at any time. Unarmed combat is allowed. If you plan on using kicking techniques, please remove your shoes and change into the school's soft boots. The condition for defeat is when the judge has determined one side is unable to continue the battle. Both sides please move behind your respective starting lines, and do not activate your CAD until I give the signal. Breaking the rules results in an automatic defeat. I will use my full strength to stop it, so remember that. That is all."

Both Tatsuya and Hattori nodded at this, walked towards the starting lines that were five meters apart, and stood facing one another. Hattori's expression was more solemn than mocking or challenging, but his face still betrayed an easy-going demeanor.

The initial position was out of physical reaching distance. Even if the opponent possessed the charging power of a professional soccer player, magic was still faster at this distance. Because this was a magic-based contest, the side with the superior magical attack would naturally have the advantage. In this situation, the one who invoked their magic first would usually win. Even if the initial attack did not completely defeat the opponent, some degree of damage was unavoidable. There were very few people that had the mental discipline to absorb magical damage and still calmly work their magic. Since sustaining magical damage also disrupted the magic creation process, as long as one continued to attack, victory was assured.

Also, under the condition that both sides activated their CADs at the same time, Hattori firmly believed that he, a Course 1 student, had no chance of losing against an upstart Course 2 student. CAD was a tool that minimized casting time. Even if someone tried to secretly use a non-CAD based magical ability before the starting signal, it would still be no match against the CAD's speed. On top of that, how quickly one could invoke their magic using a CAD made up the bulk of an individual's magic technical score. This was the defining difference between Course 1 and Course 2 students. Tatsuya held a handgun-shaped Specialized CAD. Hattori wore a traditional bracelet-shaped Generalized CAD. Specialized CADs had the advantage in speed, while Generalized CADs had the advantage in versatility. Nonetheless, even if Specialized CADs had a speed advantage over Generalized CADs, that alone could not overcome the difference between Course 1 and Course 2 students. And the opponent was a new student. Hattori's conclusion was that there was absolutely no way that he could lose, a consideration that was neither conceited nor overconfident.

Tatsuya pointed the CAD he held in his right hand towards the floor, And waited for Mari's signal. The simulation room returned to complete silence. Just as that silence was about to fill every corner of the room...

"…Begin!"

The "formal match" between Tatsuya and Hattori officially began. Hattori slid his right hand over the CAD. While the action only consisted of tapping three key points, not a single spare movement was wasted. Originally, his specialisation was in medium-ranged wide area attack magic. If anything, when it came to one-on-one close quarter matches, they were not his forte. But even so, since entering high school the year before, Hattori still stood undefeated in battle. While he might have yielded before the Big Three which consisted of Mari, a specialist in both individual and group anti-personnel combat, Mayumi, who could freely employ astounding, high-speed, high precision shooting magic, and Juumonji, a club captain who had gained a peculiar title known as "Iron Wall", Hattori had the confidence that he could hold his own against other students or even groups of teachers. That pride did not come from overconfidence. The simplistic Activation Sequence that heavily relied on speed was already complete, and in a flash, Hattori had already entered the Magic Invocation stage. At this moment, he almost let out a cry of surprise.

His opponent, that arrogant 1st Year student, was somehow close enough to fill his entire vision. He hurriedly changed his target, and prepared to unleash his magic. Any opponent caught by this magic would be flung back over a dozen meters and knocked unconscious by the impact, ending the battle. But, the magic ended without invoking. A powerful "wave motion" approached Hattori, who was too busy looking left and right for his opponent, from the flank. Three consecutive wave motions. Each overlapped with one another inside Hattori's body, causing massive swaying to break out that ultimately resulted in Hattori losing consciousness.

Victory was decided in an instant. The entire match lasted less than 5 seconds, and could be appropriately described as an instant win. In front of Tatsuya's CAD, Hattori keeled over.

"…Winner, Shiba Tatsuya." Mari cautiously announced the name of the winner.

There was not a trace of joy on the winner's face. That expression was appropriate for someone who had merely arrived at the expected result. He gave a short bow, then walked towards the table that held the CAD cases. It wasn't just his posture; he was wholly uninterested in his victory. The sound of someone slowly clapping to his victory echoed throughout the practice room, as expected when Tatsuya turned around, he saw that it was Satsuki. It was only when he met her eyes did he smile.


End file.
